The increase in cancer drug prices in the last 15 years has many contributing factors and is harming our patients and our health care system.

With typical out-of-pocket expenses of 20% to 30%, the financial burden of cancer treatment would be $20,000 to 30,000 a year, nearly half of the average annual household income in the United States. Many patients (estimated 10% to 20%) may decide not to take the treatment or may compromise significantly on the treatment plan. Source: Journal of Oncology Practice

It’s one of the most effective cancer treatments so far. And one of the most expensive cancer drugs ever. Dr. Peter Bach, who studies drug pricing, says the price tag for two recently approved CAR-T cell drugs — one is $373,000 for a single dose, the other $475,000 — are benchmarks on the road to ever-higher cancer drug price tags.

The drugs’ sticker price is only the beginning. It doesn’t include pre-treatment tests and monitoring, costly tests such as PET scans to monitor the patients’ response, and sophisticated management of toxic side effects, which sometimes require administration of an antidote that itself costs tens of thousands of dollars a dose.

While insurance may cover a lot of the costs the out-of-pocket costs can wipe out the savings of a patient and their family. According to an Asco National Survey in 2017: